Remember Me?

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<big yawn>  Has it really been so long…again? Lately, I’ve been thinking about writing a fashion-focused blog, but every time I begin to plan it out, I also begin to break out in hives. I’ll run out of things to say about clothes, I’m certain of it. I love getting dressed, but it’s not that interesting.

Here are a few things I’ve done since September 2014, and even though my twitter feed is still far superior to my memory, this time I’ll rely on memory so I don’t barrage you with minutiae:

  • I graduated my Master’s program and promptly got a job as a librarian at a small subscription library founded in 1854. I’ve been there since August and I love going to work every day — well, almost every day. Which is not bad when you consider how hard I dreaded going to work every day when I worked in finance just seven short years ago.
  • An award for writing excellence from LITA & Ex Libris was presented to me at ALA conference in San Francisco, and the paper I submitted will be published in a peer-reviewed library science journal in December. It’s not the Paris Review or anything, but I’m pretty proud of my first publication.
  • After finishing the initial draft of a new novella (163 pages) in 6 months flat, I drank some champagne with my fiction critique group-mates last week to celebrate. Don’t rush me; I’ll start revisions next month.
  • Races have continued to be a fixture: one every few months, all of them of the nice & easy 5K persuasion. I like to think of myself as a hedonist when it comes to athleticism: run only as long as it feels good. And eat a cupcake afterward.
  • I went to a couple of professional library conferences this year, as well as a writing conference in Minneapolis, where I dined solo at a James Beard Award-winning restaurant. I highly recommend both La Belle Vie’s elegant food and ambience, and the experience of luxury dining à soi-même, if you have the inclination and don’t mind breaking your piggy bank for the splurge. Donna Meagle & Tom Haverford would approve.
  • And, oh yeah, I’m a blonde now. It’s even on my driver’s license, so it’s true. I can confirm that blondes don’t necessarily have more fun, but more people do stare at them, which I assume is because the brightness is blinding, yet captivating, like a solar eclipse.

<dust> <dust> The bricolagerie is back in business. Again…

Collection Management for Bibliophiles

Published on by Heather (she/her)Leave a comment

At the moment, I’m working on an assignment comparing the collection development policies of two libraries (an academic library and a public library). Since my personal library is gigantic and beginning to leak out of the den into the rest of the house, I decided it’s time to write my own collection development policy. Boiled down to basics, here’s what I came up with:

Mission

For the reference use, edification, and entertainment of Ms. HBT.

Major Collections

  • Short Stories (DDC 800)
  • Technology (DDC 000, 300, 600)
  • Science (DDC 500)
  • Writing Reference (DDC 000, 800)
  • Libraries and Information (DDC 000)

Minor Collections

  • Music (DDC 700)
  • Graphic Novels (DDC 700)
  • Art and Large-Format Materials (DDC 700)
  • Poetry (DDC 800)
  • Novels (DDC 800)
  • Fashion (DDC 300, 700)
  • History and Society (DDC 900, 300)
  • Philosophy, Psychology, and Religion (DDC 100-200)
  • Books in French (400)

Weeding

  • If I have a special connection with the author, subject matter, or individual work: keep it.
  • If I want to read it but not necessarily to own it: keep it on the “for now” shelves. Make it a priority to read these items and then get rid of them.
  • If I’ve read it and not adored it, or not read it but it’s easy to check out of the library, or not read it and not sure why I bought it in the first place: DESELECT!

Acquisitions

Since I quit working at the bookstore, my acquisitions have tapered off significantly. Recent additions to the collection include: Murakami’s Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage and The Collected Stories of Stefan Zweig. I’ve purchased two books in the last month. Contrast that with the two books per shift I’d purchase when I worked at the bookstore. [I can’t be trusted with a debit card and a shipment of new books.]

Going forward, additions to my collection should be evaluated based on the following criteria:

  • Certain authors are required reading, e.g., Karen Russell, Chris Adrian, Phillippe Claudel, Fred Vargas.
  • New-to-me authors whose work has been highly recommended by those whose reading tastes are similar to mine may be added to the collection.
  • Materials needed to enhance my work should be purchased as needed, including literary journals and library-related materials both practical and theoretical.
  • Occasional imprudent purchases are fine — sparingly.

Using my new collection management policy, I have so far weeded more than 150 items from my library. Next up, I need to determine what to do with them: sell, donate, or some combination of the two.